Completed Chapter 22:"Birthday surprise"

Chapter 22 of Completed

Hiroyuki was walking his dog outside and he his phone starts vibrating in his pocket. He unlocks his phone and sees a message from Rie. He said, “Hm.. That’s unusual. Rie doesn’t really message me often. I wonder what could it be about?” He opens the message. The message asked, “Do you  know Eiko’s birthday?” He texted her back, “I don’t know the date. Why are you asking?” Rie messaged back, “I wanted to let you know that her birthday is in two days.”

Hiroyuki quickly replied, “Really??” Rie replied, “Yeah. Are you going to get her something?” He said, “Well yeah. I need to decide what to give her.” Rie said, “Well if you have trouble deciding what to get her, you can meet me and Itsuki at the mall. Just let me know by tomorrow morning. We will be there at 11 am.” Hiroyuki said, “Alright.” He looked at his dog and said, “I wonder what I should get her?” His dog looked back curiously and tugged on the leash. He got a bit surprised and said, “Alrighty, I get it. You want to go home.” He walks his dog back home.

He takes the leash and fills the dog’s water bowl. He walks into his room and looked online for games. He said to himself, “I am sure she already got these games.” He laid down on his bed and stared at the wall. He said, “I hope I can get her something nice from the mall.”

The next morning, Hiroyuki woke up at 9:30 am. He brushed his teeth and got ready to go to the mall. He went to the mall by train. He got off the station and see Rie and Itsuki talking in front of the mall entrance. He calls out to them and walks towards them. Rie asked Hiroyuki, “Have you decided what to get Eiko?” Hiroyuki shook his head and said, “I just got to see if there’s anything nice at the mall. What will you be getting Eiko?” Rie said, “I was thinking to get her something food related or game related. If you want, I could help you pick out a gift for Eiko.”

Hiroyuki smiled and said, “I would appreciate that!” Rie smiled back and said, “Well? what are we waiting for? Let’s go get some gifts for Eiko!” They walked into many stores. Itsuki saw a store selling party items. Itsuki said curiously, “Why aren’t we throwing a party for Eiko?” Rie answered, “Cause Eiko isn’t a party person.” Itsuki asked, “Then, how are we going to celebrate her birthday?” Rie said, “We will just give her gifts, and hang out while eating nice food.” Itsuki said, “Eiko does like being simple.”

While Rie and Itsuki were talking, Hiroyuki spotted something from his eye. He saw a pink and white floral hair clip on a mannequin. He stopped and stared at it for a few mins. Rie noticed Hiroyuki staring at the display window. She noticed him staring at the floral hair clip and said happily, “That’s one pretty hair clip.” Itsuki asked, “Are you thinking of getting that for Eiko?” Hiroyuki said, “Probably.” Rie pushed him gently and said, “Well, what are you waiting for? Go buy it!” Hiroyuki exclaimed, “But I am not sure if she would like it!” Rie shouted, “I am 100% sure that she would love it! Just trust me!” Itsuki slapped Hiroyuki’s back.

Itsuki said, “Yeah, trust Rie on this! You go buy it for her! While Rie and I will go to the gaming store to pick up something for Eiko.”

Hiroyuki sighed and said, “Alright, I will get it for her. No need to be so pushy.” He goes into a women’s accessory shop. A female employee greeted him and said, “Welcome sir! Do you need any assistance?” He noticed there were only women in the shop. He start to get embarrassed. He said nervously, “I want to buy the pink and white flower hair clip that’s on the mannequin.” The employee smiled and said, “I will get you one from the stockroom. Is that all you’re getting?” He nodded. She said, “I will meet you at the cashier.”

He walks to the cashier. She said, “The hair clip costs $15. Would you like it wrapped? The wrapping is free.” He nods and takes out his wallet. She wraps the hair clip in a pink and white dotted gift paper. She ties a white ribbon. She puts the wrapped hair clip in a bag. When she handed the bag to him, she said, “You have good taste, sir. This hair clip is limited edition and it’s celebrating the beginning of spring. Is this a gift for your girlfriend?” He started to blush a little and smiled. He said, “Unfortunately, it’s just a gift for a friend.”

He walks out of the store and head to the gaming store. Rie and Itsuki are standing outside the store. Hiroyuki asked, “What did you get Eiko?” Itsuki said, “I got her a mug from one of her favorite games.” Rie said, “I got her a keychain of her favorite character.” He said, “Oh, that’s cool.” Rie said, “I can’t wait to see Eiko receive these gifts tomorrow! Let’s give her the gifts after school!” Hiroyuki and Itsuki nodded.

The next day came. Eiko woke up from bed and brushed her teeth. She brushed her hair and got dressed for school. She grabbed her bag and opened her door. Her family yelled. “SURPRISE! HAPPY BIRTHDAY EIKO!” Fumiko and Shinji threw confetti. Kenshin put a birthday hat on her head and grinned. He said happily, “Congrats on being one year from being an adult!” Her dad sniffled and said,” I can’t believe my little Eiko is already 17. She’s growing so big.” Her mom laughed and said, “Eiko is already big. You’re being silly, dear.” Eiko made an awkward smile and said, “Ahh thanks everyone. I gotta go to class.” She quickly runs to the door.

She gets to class and greets them good morning. They wished her happy birthday. Eiko said, “Thanks!” They had a normal school day. After school, Rie said, “Let’s all walk home together. We should stop by Eiko’s favorite cafe!” Eiko said happily, “That’s a good idea!” They walked to Eiko’s favorite cafe near the train station. They sat down at a table. The waitress took their order. Rie and Itsuki took out their gifts. Rie said, “Here’s my gift to my best friend in the entire world!” Eiko grinned and said, “Aww, you shouldn’t have.” She unwrapped the gift and saw a cute keychain. She took the keychain out from the plastic wrap and said, “I love it! Thanks Rie!”

She hugs Rie. Itsuki said, “I am next!” He hands out a wrapped gift box. Eiko opens it and sees a mug with her favorite game quote on it. She smiled and said, “This will definitely be my go to mug! Thanks Itsuki!” Itsuki said, “You’re welcome!” Hiroyuki slides a bag across the table. Eiko notices it and asked, “This is for me?” Hiroyuki nods. She opens the bag and takes out the wrapped gift. She pulls the white ribbon and unwraps the gift. Her eyes starts to lit up and she said, “This is beautiful. I actually like this flower. This flower is called azalea and they bloom in spring.”

She starts to put her hair in a ponytail and puts the hair clip in. Hiroyuki stares at her and has a tender smile. He said, “I knew it would look good on you.” Eiko beamed. Rie starts to fake cough and said, “Did you know what azaleas symbolize?” Eiko looked at her with a curious expression and asked, “What does it mean?” She said, “Azalea symbolizes taking care of yourself and others around you. It’s a good gift to give someone you deeply care about.”

Hiroyuki was surprised and said to himself, “No wonder, she pushed me to buy it! She is more cunning than I thought.” Eiko grinned and she looked at Hiroyuki. She said softly, “It’s okay if you bought the gift without knowing the meaning behind the flower. Cause I still love it.” His facial expression turned warm and he stared into her eyes tenderly. He said in a gentle voice, “I am so glad to hear that.”

Author's Note

ignore grammar problems, please tell me what you think of it? I hope you enjoy chapter 22 and thank you for waiting patiently for each chapter! I created a discord group that I can give you updates when a new chapter comes out. Here's the link to my group: https://discord.gg/vyQrfME